Breaking down Gerrit Cole’s historic winning streak heading into World Series Game 1

Ahead of Tuesday night’s World Series opener, here’s a look at the unbelievable winning streak of Houston Astros Game 1 starter, Gerrit Cole.

It’s no secret that once this 2019 World Series between the Washington Nationals and the Houston Astros comes to a close, Gerrit Cole is going to get paid, perhaps even record-level paid. Many are predicting that Cole’s upcoming contract will eclipse the seven-year, $217 million deal David Price signed with the Boston Red Sox prior to the 2017 season. That’s what 19 consecutive wins will do for you.

A contract year is always a big year, especially for a Major League pitcher. In six seasons with the Pittsburgh Pirates, Cole had established himself as a very good pitcher. Loaded with a fastball that can reach 100 mph and fantastic breaking stuff, he won 40 of his first 60 decisions with the Pirates and made his first All-Star appearance in 2015, the same year he finished fourth in the NL Cy Young voting. But then the struggles came. A triceps injury limited him in 2016 and he went 7-10. In 2017, he posted a 12-12 record with a 4.26 ERA, heading in the wrong direction as he hit his prime years. But a change of venue can work wonders.

With the Pirates on the decline, Cole was moved to the Houston Astros ahead of the 2018 season and with that came a rejuvenation. He went 15-5 with a 2.88 ERA, finished fifth in the AL Cy Young voting and was an All-Star for the second time. So it was a bit of a surprise to see him struggle as the 2019 campaign got underway.

After six starts, Gerrit Cole was 1-4 with a 4.71 ERA. But he was able to bounce back with three straight wins to get back to .500 on the year. Following an unfortunate no-decision against the defending champion Red Sox on May 17, a game in which Cole pitched six scoreless innings, the then 28-year-old righthander got roughed up at home by the Chicago White Sox on May 22. In just five innings, Cole gave up six runs on seven hits in a 9-4 loss. What happened next is the things that legends are made of.

It’s been said that a pitcher is only as good as his next start, right? Well, it’s been 25 starts for Gerrit Cole dropped to 4-5 on May 22 and exactly five months later, that loss total in 2019 remains the same. Yes, you read that correctly. In 25 starts in the regular season and playoffs, with him being the pitcher of record in 19 of those, Gerrit Cole has not lost a baseball game. 19-0 in his last 25 starts. That’s insanity.

Since that loss in May, Cole is on the greatest winning streak in 107 years. Back in 1912, during an era in which the baseball itself was completely dead, Rube Marquard of the New York Giants began the season 19-0 en route to a 26-11 record. But this is the live-ball era and Gerrit Cole is doing something we’ve simply never seen. While his Astros teammate Justin Verlander might have a little something to say about it, Cole is likely to win the American League Cy Young Award before signing that rich contract. Oh yeah…he’s also the Game 1 starter of the World Series against the Washington Nationals, his first appearance in the Fall Classic.

So how did we get here? How did this historic winning streak come about? Heading into a May 27 start against the Chicago Cubs, Gerrit Cole was 4-5 with a 4.11 ERA and exactly 100 strikeouts. He would finish the regular season with 20 wins, second only to Verlander’s 21, led the American League with a 2.50 ERA and led all of baseball with 326 strikeouts, the most in the AL since Nolan Ryan’s 341 in 1977. Unreal.

Here’s a full breakdown of the historic run from Gerrit Cole.

May 27 vs. Chicago Cubs

Gerrit Cole didn’t get off to the greatest start in this interleague matchup with the Chicago Cubs, the Astros’ former foes in the National League Central, giving up a two-run homer to Anthony Rizzo in the top of the first inning. But he bounced right back and settled in, giving up just two singles over the next five innings while striking out 10 in that timeframe, finishing his day with a then season-high 12 punchouts. The Houston bullpen gave up three runs coming in but the offense had gotten to Cubs starter Cole Hamels early and often and came away with the 6-5 win, getting Gerrit Cole back to the .500 mark for the season. Little did anyone know at the time that history had begun.

W/L: 5-5 
ERA: 4.02
K: 112